Don't Walk Away
by twenty1down
Summary: Listening to this song, it sparked an idea. Brennan is leaving, but Booth has yet to tell her about his feelings. Featuring What Hurts the Most, by rascal Flatts
1. Don't Walk Away

**I heard this song and an idea sparked in my head. It's only a one-shot, but I would still love for you to review! I don't own Bones or Rascal Flatts or the song.**

* * *

Seeley Booth left the Jeffersonian and made his way to his SUV. It had been a long day and all he wanted to do was go home and sleep. This was her last night in D.C. and he didn't want to spend it worrying and regretting. His partner had accepted a temporary job in Florida. He didn't want her to go, but she was so happy. He sucked it up and encouraged her adventure.

Stepping into his vehicle, he turned the heat all the way up and waited for the cabin to warm up. After a few minutes, it was too hot so he turned the heat back down. He turned on the radio before putting his SUV in gear and heading home. He thought about the last case he and Bones had worked on. It was an unusual one, much different than their usual murder cases. The victim had committed suicide. The man was in love. The woman had died on a flight he told her to take. He became severely depressed after remembering the years of bottling up his emotions, good and bad, and decided he just couldn't take it anymore. _Too familiar._ Booth thought. He pushed the thought from his head. The squints job this time was to prove that the witness wasn't the murderer. As usual, they found the facts, and the innocent were free. Now he was on his way home, alone, with only his thoughts and the radio to occupy him.

_This case. It's too much. _Booth thought._ I am__** not**__ going to end up like that guy. Something's got to change. Maybe I should say something. _

_No! You can't. It won't work. Nothing will change. You're just going to hurt yourself more. _A louder voice from the back of his mind rang out. He shook his head, expelling the thoughts as he turned the radio up.

_What hurts the most__  
__Was being so close__  
__And havin' so much to say__  
__And watchin' you walk away_

_And never knowin'__  
__What could've been__  
__And not seein' that lovin' you__  
__Is what I was tryin' to do_

Booth groaned as he listened to the lyrics. He pulled over to the side of the road and buried his head in his hands. The song continued, taunting the man.

_It's hard to deal with the pain of losin' you everywhere I go__  
__But I'm doin' it__  
__It's hard to force that smile when I see our old friends and I'm alone__  
__Still harder gettin' up, gettin' dressed, livin' with this regret__  
__But I know if I could do it over__  
__I would trade, give away all the words that I saved in my heart__  
__That I left unspoken_

_What hurts the most__  
__Is being so close__  
__And havin' so much to say__  
__And watchin' you walk away_

_And never knowin'__  
__What could've been__  
__And not seein' that lovin' you__  
__Is what I was tryin' to do, oh__  
__Oh yeah_

_What hurts the most__  
__Was being so close__  
__And havin' so much to say__  
__And watchin' you walk away_

_And never knowin'__  
__What could've been__  
__And not seein' that lovin' you__  
__Is what I was tryin' to do_

_Not seein' that lovin' you__  
__That's what I was trying to do_

_I can't do this._ He thought. He pulled a U-turn and raced toward the other end of town.. This was his last chance before she left. He couldn't wait anymore. She had to know. Driving through the dark streets he had been down a million times, he headed towards the building. It was a straight shot from here, only a few blocks away.

_One million is an irrational estimation._ Her voice echoed in his mind. His foot pressed harder on the pedal, speeding him towards the apartment. He pulled into a parking space ignoring the awkward angle his SUV sat at before jerking his keys out if the ignition and running out of the parking garage and into the warm building. He checked in at the desk and rushed to the elevator. The button lit up at his touch. His incessant foot tapping against the hard wood floor rang out through the empty lobby. He took a sharp left, deciding the elevator was taking to long and headed towards the staircase. The muscles in his legs burned as they carried him to the top floor, three steps at a time. He ignored the pain and ran faster, finally reaching the top floor. The carpeted hallway cushioned his heavy foot falls. He stopped. The door was in front of him. He had walked through the threshold numerous times, but this time was different. His fist stopped in mid-air and his heart race sped. He took a breath and let his fist fall on the door.

A moment passed. Nothing. He was about to leave when he heard the click of a lock being opened. He saw her face and was instantly relaxed. He was still nervous, but his heart rate slowed and his breathing deepened.

"Bones, I-"


	2. Don't Let me Walk Away

**Ok, so a few of you said I should continue the one-shot I had put up earlier, so I thought to myself, ok why not? Now it's going to be a three-shot. I don't know if there will be a song for the third part yet, but if you have any suggestions, I would be glad to hear them, which means...you gotta review! :D Well, I hope you enjoy!**

**P.S. This song sort of implies that the guy is leaving, but it can work for this situation. Its not absolutely perfect, but it works.**

**I don't own Bones, Avril Lavigne or the song.**

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Temperance Brennan kneeled on the floor looking at the clothes in front of her. She was packing for her dig in Florida. She had told everyone she would only be gone for three or four months, but the truth was, she could be gone for a year or more. She was elated at the opportunity to change history, but there was something that was telling her not to go. One thing could keep her here. A dull ache in her heart had bothered her since her partner had told her to go. That was it. That was what she needed. Now she was sitting on the floor in her room packing. Her face was dry from the tears that had fallen from her eyes. She didn't know why she felt like this. It was irrational.

She finished putting her clothes away and stood up to leave her bedroom. She stopped and looked around her living room. Her eyes lingered on the jacket draped over the chair in her living room, left from his last visit. A sigh escaped her lips as she went to her radio. She turned on a random station, before grabbing a book and lying down on the couch. She didn't want to be alone in the silence.

The words in front of her began to blur and her eyes fought back the emerging tears. She tried to focus on the book, but it just wasn't happening. She put the book down and let her head fall onto the arm of the couch, her eyes closed. The music from the radio became clear. It was a song she didn't recognize, of course she didn't recognize many, but she focused on the lyrics.

_I always needed time on my own__  
__I never thought I'd need you there when I cry__  
__And the days feel like years when I'm alone__  
__And the bed where you lie is made up on your side_

_When you walk away I count the steps that you take__  
__Do you see how much I need you right now?_

_When you're gone__  
__The pieces of my heart are missing you__  
__When you're gone__  
__The face I came to know is missing too_

_When you're gone__  
__The words I need to hear to always get me through__  
__The day and make it ok__  
__I miss you_

The tears were freely flowing now. She thought about the man she…. She couldn't even tell herself. How could she? She didn't believe in it herself.

_I've never felt this way before__  
__Everything that I do reminds me of you__  
__And the clothes you left, they lie on the floor__  
__And they smell just like you, I love the things that you do_

She looks over at the jacket again. Her vision, totally blurred by the tears.

_When you walk away I count the steps that you take__  
__Do you see how much I need you right now?_

_When you're gone__  
__The pieces of my heart are missing you__  
__And when you're gone__  
__The face I came to know is missing too_

_And when you're gone__  
__The words I need to hear to always get me through__  
__The day and make it ok__  
__I miss you_

_We were made for each other__  
__Out here forever__  
__I know we were, yeah_

_And all I ever wanted was for you to know__  
__Everything I'd do, I'd give my heart and soul__  
__I can hardly breathe I need to feel you here with me, yeah_

_When you're gone__  
__The pieces of my heart are missing you__  
__And when you're gone__  
__The face I came to know is missing too_

_And when you're gone__  
__All the words I need to hear will always get me through__  
__The day and make it ok__  
__I miss you_

Brennan sighs once more. _Maybe this was a bad idea_. She thought. _She didn't have to go. Her life didn't depend on it._

_No!_ a voice with a stronger presence echoed through her mind. _If he didn't say anything then, what makes you think he will now?_ She shook her head expelling the thoughts from her mind. She slammed the power button on her radio and turned to her room. A knock on the door stopped her. Her hopes were suddenly raised, until she rationally of who it could be. The smile present on her face was quickly wiped away and she slowly made her way to the door. She sighed and let her and rest on the handle before she opened it. The man in front of her looked up. His shoulder visibly relaxed when he saw her. Brennan's breath caught in her throat.

"Bones, I-"


	3. I Will Never Let You Go

So this is the last chapter. I hope you guys enjoy it. It would have been up sooner, but I went through tones of songs to find the perfect one. I still don't even think this is perfect, but it'll do. Please please pleeeease review. I'd really appreciate it.

Line…

"Bones, I-" he paused and looked into her beautiful blue eyes. They were clouded with tears. "Bones, what…why are you crying?"

She tried to answer him, but nothing came out. When she opened the door, she thought he was there to stop her, but after a moment of rational thinking, she didn't think that was possible. He had already told her to go, why would he change his mind?

Booth wrapped his arms around her, taking a step into her house. Her sobs were muffled by his jacket. Tears threatened his own eyes as he looked around the room, seeing her bags packed, waiting, by the front door. He heard her take a deep breath and pushed him away, gathering her composure.

"What are you doing here Booth?" she asked, her head tipped down. She tried to sound indifferent, but the hope, and hurt, in her voice was apparent.

He took a moment before he responded. "Please don't leave Bones. _I_ don't want you to leave." He watched her reaction, gauging every movement. What he had just said, that was so little. So minor compared to what he wanted to tell her. He still wasn't sure if he could go through it. All he knew was that he had to stop her from leaving him. He knew Bones. He knew that if she was happy in Florida, she might stay. She didn't say it, but he knew.

Brennan's head snapped up at his words. More at the infliction of the word 'I'. _He_ wanted her to stay. Suddenly she was confused and mad. She wanted him to want her to stay, but he had been the one that told her to go. He can't tell her things like that. You can't just change your mind.

"Why? You told me to leave." She said. There was anger lingering on the edge of her words.

"Because, I-" he took a breath, unsure of his words. "Bones, I don't want you to leave. Please, just don't go." His eyes were pleading with her.

She felt bad for her tone. It had obviously hurt him. But there was no reason for her to stay. The one person that mattered had already told her to go. He was here, begging her to stay, but there was no reason for it. Obviously, he was just saying these things, realizing he had made a mistake earlier, to get her to stay and help him with the cases. She couldn't bring herself to believe there was any other reason

"You didn't answer my question Booth." She stated simply.

"Bones, I… You don't want to…" he stopped again. He couldn't tell her he loved her. That would scare her, push her away even farther. He just wanted a chance to tell her, maybe later. That wouldn't happen if she was in Florida. "Look Bones just trust me. You have to stay."

She sighed again. "Booth, I don't have time for this, I have to get a decent nights sleep. Either give me a good reason, because you have yet to do that, or please leave." Her words were sharp. She had her walls up again, not wanting to get hurt.

Booth let his head drop and he walked over to her couch. He didn't want to say it, not now, but if it was the only thing that would get her to stay, he would do just about anything. He wouldn't look at her as he began to speak. "Bones." He sighed, changing his words, not using her nickname, he was serious. "Temperance. I love you."

Brennan's jaw dropped. She tried to say something, but he continued. "I know you probably don't want to hear that but…I'm sorry I told you to go, but I thought you were going to be happy. That's all I want you know. Is for you to be happy."

She walked over and sat down next to him. Her hand found his. At her touch, he looked up at her. She was shocked by his expression. Hurt, relief, fear, and vulnerability. She didn't know what to say. She thought about her night and what had been going through her mind. This is what she wanted. He had come to stop her. He had said he loved her.

"Booth-' she started, but he had interrupted her yet again.

"Never mind Bones. Just, never mind." He got up and headed towards her door. Once there he stopped and turned around to face her. "Just don't leave, please?" Although it was a question, he left without waiting for her answer.

Brennan ran after him, not bothering to even close her door. "Booth!" she shouted. He stopped, but didn't turn around. She walked up, stepping around to be in front of him. He still wouldn't look at her. She had never seen Booth so dejected and vulnerable.

"Booth, look at me." He slowly lifted his head. "I will stay." She waited for his response. His body reclaimed the confidence she was used to, but his eyes were still showing how hurt he was. She continued. "I won't leave you, if you don't leave me."

She chose her words carefully. By saying she wouldn't leave, she was just doing what he asked, but by saying she wouldn't leave _him_, she had said what had needed to be said. Booth understood right away. He wrapped his arms around her and looked deep into her eyes.

"I will never leave you." He promised.

Brennan's radio echoed from her apartment through their loving silence. Booth twirled her around swaying with the music.

_Close your eyes, give me your hand, darling__  
__do you feel my heart beating, do you understand__  
__do you feel the same, am I only dreaming__  
__is this burning an eternal flame.__  
__I believe it's meant to be, darling__  
__I watch when you are sleeping, you belong with me__  
__do you feel the same, am I only dreaming__  
__or is this burning an eternal flame.__  
__Say my name, sun shines through the rain__  
__a whole life so lonely, and then you come and ease the pain__  
__I don't want to lose this feeling.__  
__Close your eyes, give me your hand__  
__do you feel my heart beating, do you understand__  
__do you feel the same, am I only dreaming__  
__is this burning an eternal flame ..._


End file.
